If the Golden State Warriors want to make any sort of noise in the postseason this year, they need to start finding their footing. And if their recent stretch of play is any sort of indication, it seems as though things are trending in the right direction.
On Friday night, they continued their recent stretch of solid play. They took down the Philadelphia 76ers in a big-time performance at home in which Jordan Poole played extremely well. After the game, Poole spoke about how he prepares for games, noting the differences between this year’s team and last year’s, name-dropping Draymond Green and some of his other teammates in the process.
“Yeah, this is a bit different. We had a little bit different of a team last year,” Poole said via the NBA Interviews YouTube channel. “We had a couple of older guys. Different dynamic in terms of defense. It’s a bit different when you got certain guys out there like Loon [Kevon Looney] or Draymond or Wiggs [Andrew Wiggins] or Gary [Payton II]. They just have such a defensive presence, you can kind of freestyle a little bit more and play off of rhythm. Comes with chemistry. Comes with time. As for offense, I mean, try to just be aggressive, attack, get to the paint, and try to get these guys open looks. Try to get them easy shots. And then just kind of play off of that.”
Poole put up monster numbers off the bench for the Warriors on Friday night. He put up 33 points, three rebounds, and three assists on 10-of-19 shooting from the field and 6-of-11 shooting from behind the three-point line.
As for Green, he finished the game with 10 points, seven rebounds, and 10 assists on 5-of-11 shooting from the floor and 0-of-5 shooting from beyond the three-point arc.
Stephen Curry Praises Jordan Poole
Meanwhile, Warriors superstar Stephen Curry had some kind words to say about Poole after the game.
“It was a fun way to play and to see him go off,” Curry said via the NBA Interviews YouTube Channel. “And then they made a couple of adjustments. I got loose for a couple of shots. Klay got open. Everybody was a threat, and JP [Poole] started the whole thing for us. So, it’s just a matter of him being ready for whatever he’s asked to do and whatever the game requires. It might not always be crazy scoring, but it’s just being aggressive and being ready. And he was definitely that tonight.”
Steve Kerr Shows Love to Jordan Poole
In addition, head coach Steve Kerr also had something to say about Poole, praising his game against the 76ers.
“Yeah, I mean, he had such a great playoff run last year,” Kerr said via the NBA Interviews YouTube channel. “Had so many big games for us. And tonight, something about it felt like last year in that playoff run, when Jordan is just attacking and knocking down shots but also getting to the line. Just giving us an entirely different dimension offensively, and that’s when he’s at his best. I thought he really competed down the stretch defensively as well. He was magnificent tonight.”